"Grateful for Our Educational Resources" Week

April 10-16 is National Library Week.   I was on the "T" and saw a John Grisham (one of my favorite authors) poster promoting this recognition of libraries and librarians! Grisham caught my attention, and now I hope that I catch yours!

So, first off,   I think it's a good idea for me to express my thanks, at this time, to our librarian, Jessica Bell and to others who create a remarkable learning foundation for the Institute.   Jessica's leadership is supported by her remarkable colleagues at the Treadwell Libray at MGH, led by Elizabeth Schneider.  Together, all of these colleagues make an innumerable list of resources available to us, customize resources for our students, and serve as real "knowledge managers" for faculty on the front lines!  Many colleges and unviersities are struggling with the library model for the future, the decreasing relevance of "physical" libraries, the cost and need for connecting with library networks, and with redefining the librarian as a learning expert rather than an archivist.   With the wisdom of those who have been involved in Institute planning, with the cooperation of our MGH partners, and with the talent of Jessica as our liaison and "knowledge manager" we have acheived so much, without struggling with the issues mentioned above!   Our library (and our library team) are far ahead of the times and we are most fortunate to have such talent.

But, we also need to recognize the others who support our faculty and students in the teaching and learning enterprise.  Thanks to Denis Stratford and the IT staff,  we have state of the art classrooms that are loaded with technology that we need.  We have a learning platform that is supported 24/7 for our students and faculty, we have digital video capability in our clinical spaces that enhances instruction, makes observation feasible in ways unimagined ten years ago, and brings the clinic and the classroom closer and closer.   And we also have consistent attention to our technology, data, and web based needs!

And last, but not least, we are grateful for our Instructional Designer, Diane Ottovianni.  Diane is keeping busy supporting some of our online faculty,  conducting consultations and workshops for all of us, and looking to future needs.   Many of you have already experienced Diane's expertise in pedagogy and in technology improvements for courses.

So,  I hereby declare "library week" as "Grateful for Educational Resources Week."   We are so fortunate to have an energetic, passionate, and commited team of resource personnel in place to help make the IHP such a great place to teach and to learn.